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Turki Alalshikh did not stutter when he said, “The world will be watching.” With the official announcement of Canelo Alvarez (63-2-2, 39 KOs) vs. Terence Crawford (41-0, 31 KOs), the boxing world is abuzz once again in anticipation of what will undoubtedly be one of the biggest showdowns of the year. However, the involvement of UFC honcho Dana White in the promotions hasn’t necessarily gone down well with boxing aficionados.
Following UFC 316, White was asked if he would be promoting the fight.
“I’m promoting the fight,” he responded without skipping a beat. Meanwhile, he also shot down questions about the alleged trouble in paradise between him and Alalshikh, adding that things were “very good” between the duo.
“Listen, we’re at work at UFC headquarters. I’m in my own little world, man. I don’t pay attention, not to any of that sh*t. I know what’s going on. I know what we’re doing,” White said.
The three-stop promotional tour for the fight will begin in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on June 20 before proceeding to Fanatics Fest in New York City and concluding in Las Vegas.
White later took to X to tease the promotion under the Zuffa Boxing banner.
A once in a lifetime fight!!! @Zuffa_Boxing @Canelo vs @terencecrawford is LIVE GLOBALLY on @netflix September 13th #CaneloCrawford pic.twitter.com/gDF3jNL0VF
— danawhite (@danawhite) June 10, 2025
“Turki wants to make the biggest fights that the fans want to see in boxing, and this is right up my alley. Are you kidding me that the first boxing fight I’m going to get to promote is Canelo vs. Crawford? It’s literally a once-in-a-lifetime fight,” he wrote.
On the other hand, the decision to broadcast the fight on Netflix has caused quite the stir, especially after the disastrous streaming fiasco of the Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul fight. With fingers itching to reach for the ‘#unwatchable” hashtag, support soon arrived from notable names, including Alvarez and Lou DiBella, who called it a propellant to “create proper momentum for the new Saudi/TKO promotion.”
Will The Undercard Become A Detriment?
Alalshikh recently took to X to announce the list of “young, hungry fighters” in the undercard.
The world will be watching Riyadh Season’s Canelo Alvarez-Terence Crawford fight of the century on Netflix. And for that, I want to load the undercard with young, hungry fighters who deserve the chance to perform under the bright lights. These are some of the names I hope to see… pic.twitter.com/vnRy0OMfNH
— TURKI ALALSHIKH (@Turki_alalshikh) June 11, 2025
What stood out was that, barring a few, the fighters in the list were largely unknown. Social media users were quick to voice their disapproval of this Dana White-esque approach to the undercard, with many blaming it on his involvement in the promotion. Many boxing fans pondered if the entire budget was blown on the main event, leaving mere pennies for the undercard.
Is this a shrewd business tactic to keep all eyes glued to the main event? Or is this their way of giving a stage to upcoming boxers? Only fight night can tell.
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